Thursday, June 29, 2017

War doesn’t just start on whim. It always comes to a tipping point, but before this, there are key events leading up to its outbreak. World War II was no different.

World War II was an effect of the turmoil left by World War I. The Treaty of Versailles concluded the war between Germany and the Allied Powers. However, since Germany lost, the treaty was rather harsh against the Germans. They were required to pay reparations, but since they lost, the German economy was in ruins, making the burden too difficult to bear.

In the period before World War II, Japan was expanding rapidly. But since it was an island nation, the Japanese did not have the natural resources to support their growth. As an empire, they invaded the likes of Manchuria and China.

Other countries were taken over by dictators who formed fascist governments, with the only objective being creating the biggest empire possible. Franco took over Spain, Mussolini took over Italy, and Hitler took over Germany, wherein the Nazi party ruled with such power and influence.

Soon enough, Hitler took over Austria, and then Czechoslovakia. By means of appeasement, other big European countries, like France and Britain, who were interested in keeping the peace thought it would be wise to make Hitler happy, rather than try to go against him. It turned out that they were wrong, because it only made Hitler bolder.

This imbalance was the perfect condition for war to erupt. The Axis powers were formed, and soon enough Pearl Harbor was bombed. That was the beginning of what remains to this day as the biggest devastation known to man.

Tuesday, May 16, 2017

Some of the most adored heroes of World War II have risen from the ranks. One particularly interesting true to life story is that of Vasily Zaitsev, one of the most famous snipers out of the Russian Army.

Vasily started as a humble shepherd boy who used to help out his grandfather in the snow fields of Siberia to tend to their flock. There were many predators around that would often sneak up on sheep. In particular, wolves frequented the area. This was when Vasily’s grandfather taught him how to use a rifle at a very early age.

This knowledge and early experience easily made Vasily a natural when it came to handling a long range gun. He easily found his way to the Russian army because of his skill.

It was in Stalingrad where Vasily Zaitsev served his country with the best that he knew. This was in the middle of the war between Russia, and the Adolf Hitler-led German army. Stalingrad was a messy warpath, having recorded about 2 million lost lives in a span of eight months.

Zaitsev wasted no bullets. For him, it was one shot, one kill. From his crude training in the Siberian snow, he obviously learned well from protecting sheep against the wolves. But in Stalingrad, he seemed to be the predator. In his first ten days with his Mosin-Nagant rifle as a sniper for the Soviet 1047th Rifle Regiment, he shot down 40 Nazis from long distance.

By the end of his service, he had 242 confirmed kills under his belt, including Berlin’s sniping champion, who was a cold-blooded killer himself. Lieutenant Vasily Zaitsev eventually gained the Soviet Union’s top award for bravery and skill. He won the hearts of the rest of the world too.

Sunday, April 30, 2017

WWII is an important part of our history, but it can be a sensitive topic to teach your kids. And though it’s one of the darkest times of our past, teaching the younger generation about this part of our history is a crucial part of learning about the present.

Though WWII started in Britain, almost half the world was involved. It was a battle between the Allied and Axis powers. The Allied Powers were Britain, France, Russia, China, and the United States. The Axis Powers were Germany, Italy, and Japan.

When and where

WWII started in 1939 with Germany’s unprovoked invasion of Poland. Britain and France responded with a declaration of war on Germany. The war in Europe ended with Germany’s surrender on May 7, 1945, while the war in the Pacific ended with Japan’s surrender on Sept. 2, 1945.
The war started from Europe and spread throughout the world, with the most damage done Europe and Southeast Asia.

The role of US

Many Hollywood movies depict the U.S. as the country that won the war against the Axis Powers. However, the US didn’t join the war until 1941 when Japan attacked the Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. The war was won by the collective efforts and sacrifices of the men and women of the Allied Powers.

Wednesday, March 15, 2017

Nothing in all of sports is worth celebrating more than a goal in soccer. Especially if it a game-winning goal made during the final seconds of the match. Below are some of these moments worth reliving.

Liverpool’s comeback to secure Champions League Victory

Liverpool was trailing Milan 3-0 at half-time in the 2005 Champions League final. At the second half, the Liverpool made a rally headed by Steven Gerrard and Vladimir Smicer. They secured the victory during overtime drama.

Sergio Aguero’s heroics gave Manchester City its first Premier League title

Aguero’s last-minute game-winner in the finals of the 2011-12 season was among the finest in history. United almost took home the trophy when Sergio smashed the ball into the QPR net.

Diego Maradona’s 'Hand of God'

The 1986 World Cup was witness to the greatest individual performance in soccer history when Maradona scored the goal of the century four minutes after poking with his little pinky beyond Peter Shilton.

Wednesday, February 15, 2017

In the darkest days of the war, when the world was in commotion, fuel and food were scarce, and people took to sports to lift their morale. The role of sports played a huge role to keep the world’s civility intact. Below are the sports the thrived during World War 2.

Boxing

Boxing was hugely popular. Joe Louis won a rematch against heavyweight champion German Max Schmeling in 1938. Joe Louis was drafted and spent the war giving boxing exhibitions in bases around the country.

During the war, American sports took a huge hit. Months after the attack on Pearl Harbor, automobile sports like racing were suspended to save on gas and rubber rationing.

Major League Baseball commissioner Judge Kenesaw asked President Roosevelt if the sport will be cancelled as well. To maintain good public morale, Roosevelt decided to continue funding the sport. There were many top talented players that lost their lives during the war, but many more stepped up.

Tuesday, February 7, 2017

Jurgen Klinsmann was the head coach of the United States men’s national soccer team. That was his last gig. He has also been a football manager in Germany. But for a host of German fans, he will always be the quintessential football striker.

Klinsmann’s athletic prowess combined with his keen sense of the goal and his killer instinct make for the perfect striker. Just like the perfect predator or assassin, Klinsmann utilized all these abilities and struck into the hearts of opponents’ defenses time and time again. The first time he suited up for the West German team was in 1987. Upon his retirement, Klinsmann had 108 caps, which was 4th overall. He also scored 47 goals in the highest levels of competition for the national team, which was good enough to put him in 4th place alongside Rudi Voller.

He won the 1990 FIFA World Cup with the West German team besting the Diego Maradona-led Argentina, and six years later, led the German team to the UEFA European Championship. He scored in all the major international tourneys that he played in, and in 1995, was third overall for the FIFA World Player of the Year.

In 2004, Klinsmann received yet another honor, when FIFA recognized him as one of the 125 Greatest Living Footballers. That in itself is a testament to the legendary striker that is Jurgen Klinsmann.

Tuesday, January 10, 2017

Several factors are involved when attempting to achieve success in football, as with any other sport. Preparing oneself mentally and physically are staples. For this blog, we’ll tackle the physical aspects of preparation, mainly what the body needs to become a strong footballer.

Endurance

A football match is 90 minutes of walking, jogging, jumping, sprinting, and kicking. You sometimes use your head or chest. Cardio work is very much a must, and the fact that it leads to muscular endurance is what football players need.

Strength

The common misconception is that footballers have little need for strength. A closer look at a professional player’s training routine would prove this theory wrong. Strength is needed when developing quickness and speed for those burst movements that are very common on the pitch. Also keep in mind that there is a lot of contact in football, especially when jostling for control.

Footballers need to get to the ball before the opponents do. They need to be quick enough to be off-side traps or chase down opposing forwards coming in for the kill. This is where speed comes in, which is almost as important as endurance and strength, and which the greatest footballers possess in abundance.

Flexibility

Flexibility affects a person’s range of motion. The more flexible a footballer is, the more moves he can perform. This adds to versatility. But more importantly, being more flexible generally means the person is safer or has a lower risk of injury.

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About Me

My name is John Eilermann, and I am a huge fan of the St. Louis Cardinals and the German football club Hannover 96. I hope you will all enjoy the articles I post here discussing baseball, soccer, and other sports. If you’re also interested, you can also check out my articles about World War II, a topic that is important to me.